In July 2009, New Jersey native Christina Grimmie posted the first video of herself
singing a Hannah Montana cover on YouTube. She soon amassed a large social media following as
she continued to post covers that displayed her raw talent. According to Orlando Weekly,
Grimmie subsequently became Selena Gomez's opening act and appeared on Ellen. She also
released music independently and made appearances at Radio Disney.
In 2014, Grimmie joined Season 6 of The Voice, a televised singing competition. At just 19,
she auditioned by singing Miley Cyrus's "Wrecking Ball" and went on to choose
Adam Levine as her mentor. And although she didn't win, she came in third place
overall. After her time on The Voice, Grimmie continued to work on music and perform. The
Orlando Weekly reports that she was even offered a contract with Island Records.
On June 10, 2016, she opened for the band Before You Exit at the Plaza Live Theater in Orlando,
Florida. According to E! Online, Grimmie had recently released her EP, Side A, and was on
tour to promote her new music. After the concert ended, the BBC states that Grimmie stayed to meet
fans and sign autographs. That's when 27-year-old Kevin Loibl approached and shot her. Loibl was
quickly tackled by Grimmie's brother, though he managed to escape and turn the gun on himself.
Grimmie later succumbed to her injuries and died at a local hospital at just 22 years old.
"The 22 year old murdered while meeting fans and signing autographs."
"It does appear that he came here to commit this crime."
According to CNN, Kevin Loibl had become obsessed with Christina Grimmie a year before committing
the murder-suicide. He believed he could have a relationship with her,
going as far as losing weight and getting Lasik surgery and hair transplants for her,
according to Billboard. Though coworkers and friends knew of his infatuation, no one knew the
extent of his delusions. Loibl was said to have spent hours watching Grimmie's videos and referred
to her as his soulmate. He even maintained that he had previously met her at a concert.
But those close to him say he never talked about guns or threatened to hurt himself or Grimmie.
Global News reports that Loibl's friend, Cory Dennington, stated that Grimmie had led Loibl
to find God. According to TMZ, Loibl did have a previous history of violence, which included two
incidents involving his father and his father’s fiancé. Charges were never filed against him.
CNN notes that Loibl's family said he didn't have a known mental illness. He was able to
legally purchase two 9mm handguns shortly before he murdered Grimmie.
Although Dennington told Loibl that a relationship with Grimmie was impossible and irrational,
Dennington said that "Loibl would become angry and defensive" when he brought it up. E! Online writes
that Loibl traveled from St. Petersburg, Florida, to Orlando with the intention to kill Grimmie.
Upon the murder-suicide, TMZ stated that Loibl's family taped a statement to their door that read:
"Deepest sorrow for [the loss] to the family,
friends & fans of the very talented, loving Christina Grimmie."
Grimmie's autopsy report states that she was shot twice and died of gunshot
wounds to the head and chest. No drugs were found in her system,
and her death was ruled a homicide. According to the Los Angeles Times,
Grimmie was shot at 10:30 p.m. and was pronounced dead after midnight. Her brother, Marcus, stated
that when the gunman approached her, Grimmie had her arms open for him. He later told Insider:
"She just genuinely loved the people around her and
gave everyone the time of day, no matter what."
Global News writes that Grimmie's The Voice coach, Adam Levine, paid for her funeral.
Days before her death, Grimmie had expressed her excitement for the future in an interview
with PopCrush and stated that she was planning to release another album. Her family later started
the Christina Grimmie Foundation to support families of gun-violence victims. In March 2022,
Grimmie's family released a new song she was working on prior to her death. The song,
titled "Rule the World," is being used to gather donations for Grimmie's
foundation. Since its inception in 2017, the foundation has donated over $200,000.
Many believe that Grimmie's tragic death wasn't headline news due to the
Pulse Nightclub shooting, which occurred in Orlando two days after her murder.
"This has been such a tough week for Orlando. The venue where Grimmie was
killed is just a few miles from Pulse Nightclub."